Jerry Nelson

Born July 10, 1934 in Tulsa, OK, Jerry Nelson received his first puppet, a marionette, when he was 12, and soon began experimenting with movement as well as various voices. His first break came in 1963 as a puppeteer for the legendary Bil Baird on a tour of New England. He later assisted Baird with a live show sponsored by Chrysler at the 1964 New York World's Fair. After serving in the U.S. Army, Nelson worked as a page for WRC-TV, Washington, D.C.'s NBC affiliate, where he frequently saw college freshman Jim Henson working on a five-minute puppet show called "Sam and Friends" (1955-1961), which featured an early version of Kermit the Frog. When Henson took his creation - a puppet-marionett... Continue Bio >>